Monday, July 8, 2013

A Shadow Supreme Court

Ezra Klein spoke about this tonight while covering for Rachel Maddow. I was shocked and appalled by what I heard. Everyone knows about the FISA court (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court). Everyone knows that it meets in secret, and its function is to govern the national surveillance state per the Patriot Act. However, it appears that this so-called court is making laws in secret - laws which only it can interpret. Neither Congress nor the American people have knowledge or input. Further, it appears that the eleven "justices" on this court were appointed by Chief Justice John Roberts who has unilateral control over these appointments without Congressional oversight.

We are being asked to take a lot on faith here. That is to say that we are being asked to blindly believe that the people he has appointed, all appointed to other courts by Republicans save one, are doing what is in the best interest of the American people; and that unlike the man who appointed them they are not simply political partisans.

In addition to all of this when the government comes before this court it almost always wins. That could be because the other side of any question is not heard. Call me stupid, but this sounds more like a rubber stamp then a court. Call me doubly stupid but it seems to me that these legal paramours of King John 1st are beginning to function like a Shadow Supreme Court. By the shade if Franz Kafka, this is wrong in a democratic state.